Groceries in Japan!

Buying groceries in Japan is a trip.


And I mean that in both senses of the word... It is both trippy (very confusing and disorienting) and also literally quite a journey. I feel like I've aged after attempting to do a large grocery shop in Japan...


First of all, grocery shops in Japan do not have large trolleys like in the West. Instead, they have tiny shopping basket holders. So you can not shop more than one basket unless you have a second person to push a second basket holder... Japanese people usually shop a couple of times a week, doing small shops each time. This annoys me, because I like to just plan out my week and buy all that food so I don't have to waste time within the week... Plus, I'm working later now that I'm in Japan, and no one wants to go grocery shopping at dinner time.


Trying to buy meat is depressing. First, it's super expensive for tiny amounts. All of the meats are pretty pricey. Second, all their cuts and types of meat are different and written in Japanese. Want to buy low fat beef mince? Good luck! I'm not sure if they even have a low fat beef mince... I tried just buying the reddest mince (which was still not as red as the low fat options we get in Aus) and it still created a pour-worthy amount of oil in the pan. Not cool, Japan. Not cool. It's also very hard to work out the caloric value of a lot of Japanese meat, not being familiar with all the different types of meat. It seems like Japanese beef basically comes in thin slices, ranging from "nearly entirely fat" slices to "slightly less fat" slices. Which is delicious, don't get me wrong. But I need my protein!


It's VERY hard to get protein in Japan...  Meat and seafood is all very expensive and contains a lot less protein than in Aus, as they choose fattier cuts generally. Protein shakes are not available in general super markets like they are in Aus, and even high protein "mousses" that you can get in some convenience stores are actually NOT very high protein... Jason and I have resorted to buying protein powder online from myprotein.com and are waiting for it to arrive.


Fruit and veg are also very expensive here. It's so weird not being able to buy all the fruit and veg you want. Fruit becomes a delicacy. You start craving an apple (the apples are like $2 a piece here). Apparently fruit and vegetables are most expensive this year than ever before, as they had a typhoon in Autumn that wiped out a lot of crops. So you start thinking about how much nutrition is worth to you, because you will have to put a price on it. You start buying cheaper vegetables like cabbage and Japanese cucumbers.


The shops were overwhelming for me at first, becuase our grocery shop is so large, and has so many sections that our shops in Aus just don't have, and so many items I'm unfamiliar with. It was sensory overload. The first week we were here we went shopping every day, just buying groceries for the day, becuase we couldn't figure out what to get. We wanted to try everything! Japanese grocery shops have a fried food section (that's right), a bento (packed meal) section, a sushi section, a bento ingredient section (ready made small foods for you to put into your own bentos) and a huuugee bakery section.


Oh the bakery section.... It is amazing. So many amazing rolls, breads, and sweets. And all so cheap. Why can't the healthy stuff be cheap!? No, instead, it's the baked goods... It's so tempting. I avoid it now. Because my first week here I just binged on amazing soft Japanese cakes and buns and cream filled things every day... Again, I wanted to try everything... And the range is huge... It was so exciting... Aaaand now I have to lose those kilos. Thanks, bread.


One element of Japanese grocery shopping that I'm having a love/hate relationship with at the moment is all the seasonal goodies. They always have an events or seasonal section of the shop where they highlight al the LIMITED EDITION seasonal snacks and drinks and things. This is usually displayed right at the front where you can see them and feel the need. The need for cute, limited snacks. For example, right now we are coming into Spring so they have cherry blossom flavoured everything for a limited time. Cherry blossom kitkatsa, cherry blossom chips. I don't care who you are, you WILL feel the urgency. Japan is VERY good at this. You will want to try them out of novelty, but then if you like them, you'll feel the urgency to buy them as many times as you can before they are taken away to be replaced with the next flavour. Japan has these both for seasons and also events. Like special Girls Day snacks, or New Years snacks. It is very compelling.


After a couple of weeks, you do start getting used to the products, you start to find which things work for your life. Japanese ingredients are cheaper than imported, and seasonal ingredients are cheaper than off season. Eventually it starts to be less exhilarating/panic inducing.